Our Kick Off to the Holidays!!

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The first week of November always brings our kick-off to the holidays!

We have been doing this tradition for as long as I can remember!!

I even remember spending the first week of November at my parents house in Illinois back in 2011, and we did this there with them too.

Operation Christmas Child is a WONDERFUL ministry, and so easy to be a part of!

The first Wednesday of November the kiddos (that were home) and I headed to the dollar store to do our shoebox shopping!

We always get a plastic shoebox for every box we want to give and then fill it with gifts for the appropriate age and gender.

We also got a shoebox and gifts for Chad and Blake so they could participate in packing the boxes after dinner that evening!

We all enjoy selecting things for our shoeboxes, but I think Eliza enjoys this the most!!


I had a brilliant idea a couple of years ago to have the cashier check out one shoebox at a time and then put everything from that one shoebox back into the plastic tub.

It makes it much easier to keep track of everyone’s selections!


That evening after dinner we packed up our shoeboxes, made homemade cards for them, and labeled them so they were ready for drop off.

It was very fun!!!

Making a card is our favorite part!!

This year we packed our selections in the boxes that our church had that were specifically from Operation Christmas Child.

I kept the plastic tubs because I needed them for shoe storage!

Note to self – the actual shoeboxes from OCC are much larger than the plastic tubs!

We needed to buy more gifts than we had!


I am thankful that we have holiday traditions that the children count on!!

They spur me on to continue them and they are worth continuing!!

We have many other traditions around the holidays – stay tuned for those!!

I LOVE CHRISTMAS TIME!!!

I hope you all do too!!

The Rest of October

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The weather in September and October was nothing short of AMAZING!

We had such a warm October and even November and December this year!

We just covered our strawberries for winter after Thanksgiving.

Crazy!

Nice weather has given us lots of time outside – even on the chillier days!

We go for walks, spend time with the animals, prep the land and gardens for winter, and even play soccer on the deck!

I took this first photo on October 1st when I was wearing sandals to church because it felt like summer – what in the world??!!

The colors changed so slowly around Twin Oaks back in October, but it still was beautiful!

I wish I could have taken photos every single time I was driving somewhere in October.

The colors here this year were certainly the BEST we have had in a long, long time!

We did have one slight snowfall in October – only a dusting though, that disappeared quick.


We had plenty of outings in October as well – a lot of our same things!

We are pretty predictable people!!

Our monthly Hymn Sing is always a blessing!


Lane is doing SO great with his orthodontic treatment!

We see the orthodontist about every three months right now.


Predictable people get their haircut every four weeks on a Wednesday at 2 p.m.

Just saying!


We also had our six month check-ups at the dentist in October.

Eliza came out from having her turn and said, “Mama!! That is the first time I did not cry at the dentist!”

Well, when she said that it made me cry!!

You have NO IDEA what this means to us.

The Lord has allowed SO much healing for our brave, strong girl!!


There are times, like when Blake is traveling away from home, when we just go out shopping to not lose our minds.

A trip to Walmart to browse can be just the trick!!


Blake and I had a date night at the beginning of October!

I think it was our last one since then?

You guys! That is NOT ok!

We sat by the fire at Starbucks in Hyvee that night and it was wonderful even though we were exhausted!


While Blake was out of town one weekend in October, I took the younger kids over to Kay’s after church and we stayed there all afternoon.

FILLED MY CUP!!

And Kay fed us way too good – it was so yummy!!


In case you are wondering if we still have dogs – here a quite a few photos to show you that is a yes.

Somehow these photos are mostly all of Ruby Jane!

She is just more cuddly and always, always at my side or at my feet.

I love Sadie Jo just as much, I promise!

They are such sweet pups!

Eliza and I are already dreaming of not one, but two new dogs…time will tell!!!

Don’t tell my hubby, ok???


We ran outside one night in October to see if we could see a line of satellites that you were supposed to be able to see.

Look at the photo I captured!!

We sure did see it!!

It was SO neat!!!


I grabbed this photo with the newly engaged couple once they returned from Florida!

WE ARE SO HAPPY!!!!!

Wedding plans are moving along!!!

They will be getting married in May!!


That was taken on a Sunday and we REALLY enjoy our Sundays here at Twin Oaks!!

Our house gets full, and loud, and is filled with conversations, laughter, and sharing – IT IS FANTASTIC!!!!!

These first two photos are Addie and I being very distracted during a congregational meeting after church one Sunday.

Can you blame us??


The kiddos have to bundle up for morning chores now, but we are still loving our goats and chickens!!

Blake has the Lil’ Red Barn all buttoned up and warm and they are doing great!!


I read or listened to several good books in October.

I seem to be a historical fiction fan right now!

There is something about the fact that I stood in the concentration camps that you can visit in Germany when I was a child – only 30 years or so after all of that wickedness happened.

It is something I will NEVER forget.

There are so many good books about World War II if that is something you are interested in!


We still have a librarian here – the only difference is that he is WAY taller than me now, and also that he does not work Saturdays at the library anymore.

That means that I do not volunteer to be with Lane at the library on Saturdays anymore either!

I miss it!

It was really a neat thing while it lasted!

We are super grateful still for Lane’s job there and he loves it too!

Right now he works only four hours on Friday afternoons.


Drum roll please……

it is now time for my signature sky photos!!!

Which means this long post is almost over!!!

This first photo is one Grant sent to me while he was in Florida with Kamryn and her family – and I about jumped through my phone to join him on that beach!!!

SO many beautiful skies in October, you all!

So unique in their own ways!!

All perfectly placed by the Lord I love!!


You all, Christmas is in SIX DAYS.

What in the world.

I am in a season like no other, where time is flying faster than ever, where I feel like I am doing nothing well, where I feel stretched in so many directions that I cannot keep up with it all –

I reflect on it a lot during my morning quiet time and I pray about it a lot too.

The Lord shows me again and again that I am right where He wants me – the mama of a BIG, busy family – full of many ages, personalities, and needs because each child is in a different season of their own.

I NEVER feel worthy of all this!!

I am thankful that God’s promises are true!

He is my strength, my joy, and fills me with grace each day to try to glorify and enjoy Him!!

I need a nap though, ha, ha!!!!

Christmas break is only a few days away – I am looking forward to that!!

Back to this post – I hope your October was wonderful too!!

Next up, all the amazing things that the Lord allowed in November!!

A Day With Our Grands

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At the end of October we were privileged to have our five oldest grand kiddos spend the day with us while their Mama, Dad, and baby sister were out of town for the day!


The key to attempted success with that many young kiddos is to have a bit of a plan.

So I made a plan!

We followed the plan!

And we had the BEST day!

My plan included playdoh – so I made some.

They all sat at the kitchen table for almost two hours that morning playing with that playdoh!

Addie and I were chatting with each other while they played and I did not take one photo.

It was super sweet to see how much they enjoyed playing with that playdoh!


My plan had a goal of simple foods but full bellies – so I bought chicken nuggets and French fries to bake for lunch, and planned waffles for dinner.

They enjoyed these choices very much, and bellies were full!!


My plan also included reading aloud to the children so I chose a book to read and some coloring pages to print.

This book ended up being the perfect length, with just enough suspense to keep everyone interested!

I would stop often and ask questions – and they all were able to answer!

Kayla is teaching them to love books they way I taught her to love books!


I also had planned some rest time for the youngest ones and a show/rest time for the older ones – which we did.

The little girls love to rest in Addie’s room!


We finished our read aloud book after our dinner that night, and then Blake and Lane took the kiddos home to get them ready for bed and to bed on time.


WHAT a fun day!!

My grand children are always SO very well behaved for me!

The training that David and Kayla pour into their children makes them SUCH a joy to be with!!

I am so glad that they live so close by and that we will always have these memories that we are making together.

Sweet grands, NaiNai LOVES YOU ALL SO MUCH!!!!

Can’t wait until next time!!

You Know We Love Food!!

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Every time I try to plan these little pages of my scrapbook here, I am shocked by the number of food photos I have!

I do spend time each day posting on Instagram stories, and those posts are heavy in the food prep department, just saying.

I have many followers over there that really enjoy our food preparations and all the eating we do!

I know I have said it before, but I do enjoy looking at our scrapbook here because these food photos inspire even me!

I am inspired to make things again that I have forgotten that we loved!!

October was full of good food, as always.

First, let’s talk about sourdough.

I was given a gluten-free sourdough starter quite awhile ago by a sweet friend I had met to have coffee with.

Every time I thought about starting it, I honestly thought it would just be too much to keep up with.

I should know better than that!

Learning is best by DOING.

I am not sure what made me finally start it when I did, but I am so glad I did!

I keep our starter in the fridge, which takes the stress away from constantly needing to feed it.

When I open the fridge and actually look at it long enough to realize there is a substantial hooch on top, I feed it some Organic Brown Rice flour and an equal part of filtered water.

So far I have made pizza crust, cobbler, muffins, waffles, pancakes, and biscuits with our gluten-free sourdough.

They ALL have turned out amazing!!

It just takes a little thought to start your recipe the night before on the counter so that it can rise before using it!

SO worth my time as it is just so much healthier for the precious bellies I am feeding here!


Tate has taken over the weekly job of making chicken stock.

We eat A LOT of soup here, especially now that I make soup for our family Sunday lunch each week!

I have to lift the instant pot insert for him, but he takes care of the rest!


Menu planning, cooking and baking are such a huge part of my life and season right now.

I wonder what in the world I will do with myself when I only have Blake and myself to cook for??

I am thankful that the Lord helps me stay creative in the kitchen so that it continues to be enjoyable!!

I am also thankful that I have my trio of Lane, Tate, and Eliza home with me here and that we can cook and bake together.

Just LOOK at all the yummy things we make!!


Ok, you all, that was 47 photos of food.

Wait, who am I talking to – there is probably no one here anymore BECAUSE that was 47 photos of food, ha, ha!

Someday I will look back on this and will not even believe that I used to cook this much!!

You know all that cooking and baking means there was grocery shopping.

At the beginning of 2023 I started grocery shopping every two weeks very early on a Friday morning.

I am still doing that, even though it is a bit of a marathon to handle it all by myself!

That week in between is SO worth the effort of the week I have to shop!

I also usually find some kind of treat for myself while pushing two carts through the store, and Blake is great at stopping for our bulk items like cases of bananas or cases of potatoes.

I also have an amazing crew of helpers in the kitchen who are constantly doing dishes!!

There a a lot of dishes.

A lot!


Even though a big family, celiac disease, and food intolerances keep our kitchen super busy – I am always thankful for the job of nourishing our bodies with delicious and nutritious meals.

It is a privilege!!

Well, if you made it to the end of this October’s food post – bless you!

Hopefully one of those 47 photos inspired you to make something for you and your family that you haven’t made in awhile or maybe ever before!

Happy cooking and baking, friends!

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